Get Onboard With Pinterest’s Most Popular Plant Trend

Plants have taken hold of the home decorating arena, quickly becoming everyone’s favorite accessory, and while there are no places off limits for your green babies, there may be one spot you’re overlooking: the bathroom. Searches for “shower plants” are up 302% on Pinterest so what’s all the fuss about?

I’m not advocating turning your bathroom into a jungle, but a few well-placed ferns and beyond can do a couple of things for you. First, if you’re not the most successful plant parent, the balmy, humid air in most bathrooms can do the heavy lifting for you in terms of care and watering. Second, some species have been shown to actually remove toxins and bacteria from the air, which can potentially provide you with a little health boost. And finally, plants in a bathroom add that much-needed layer of life to what can often feel like a visually cold, sterile room. (Bonus: they really nail that whole effortless boho look if you’re into that kind of thing.)

Whether your space is light and bright or dark and small, there’s a shower plant for you. I promise. Just be mindful of what you pick, because some plants can be toxic to pets and even little ones.

Air plants are super cute, but they just kind of sit there in a terrarium, which seems like a waste because they’re so textural and dimensional. That’s why I love this idea from Farm & Foundry of letting them loose in a shower, where they can just artfully perch on a set of shelves and absorb your shower’s overspray. How effortlessly cool does that look?

Of course, you could also cluster a few air plants in a trio of glass orbs and suspend them from the ceiling over your tub or shower surround like designer Heather Garrett did in this ultra glam bathroom. This is a great way to fill an empty corner. If you don’t want to make holes in your surfaces, you could thread rope through them and tie them around your shower rod or a fixture handle. Just be sure they’re somewhat close to a window, since sunlight is just as important as H2O for keeping these little babies alive.

Lucky enough to have a window sill right in your shower or near the tub? This is the perfect place to display a collection of light-loving little guys.

No window sill or fancy shower niche? No problem. Just get a shelf—wall-mount or freestanding—and create a nice little grouping. Boston ferns (the big, drape-y variety in the foreground of this scene from Wood Melbourne) work particularly well in this set up.

For those of you in rentals, don’t worry. You can get in on the action, too. If you don’t have a shower shelf, window sill or room for a stool, just buy a plant with a hanger-like hook that you can just clip onto your shower rod. Nothing too heavy though—maybe just a small fern or two. You don’t want to jeopardize the stability of the rod. Or use your shower caddy like The Rainforest Garden did (check out their DIY here).

Ever heard of kokedama? It’s a Japanese hanging moss ball (like the ones shown here from Inside Out) that, turns out, is ideal for hanging in your shower. You can plant other species directly into the moss as well, which means you can pack a lot of greenery into a small spot. They’re pretty easy to DIY, too, if you don’t want to spring for a readymade one.

So basically if you have a shelf or a shower caddy, you can make a shower plant happen. And a little greenery, especially stuff that you don’t have to stress about watering, never hurt anyone.